Clothes hamper



April 3, 1956 G. w. FORNELL CLOTHES HAMPER Filed June 25 1127522701? 620065 W fbelmz Kym This invention relates to clothes hampers. More particularly, it relates to a combined clotheszhamperand duffle bag.

It is a general object of my invention to provide a novel.

and improved clothes hamper. for suspension from a basement ceiling directly beneath the discharge opening of a clothes chute, thehamper being of cheap and: simple construction.

A more specific object is to provide. a novelandimproved suspendable clothes hamper which will readily serve without adjustment or alteration thereto as an efiicient duflle bag.

Another object is to provide a clothes hamper adapted to be suspended directly below the discharge openingof a clothes chute and having improved means of removing the dirty clothes therefrom.

Another object is to. provide a suspendable clothes hamper whichv maybe readily emptied. without adjustment or tilting of the hamper.

Another object it to providea clothes hamper adapted to be suspended from a basement ceiling-which will eliminate the danger of. injury toindividuals moving about. in the basement as.aresult.ofbumpingagainst thesame- Another object is to provide an improved suspendable clothes hamper which is more inexpensive than the usual hamper, which will not snag the clothes deposited therein, which is easy to assemble, is washable, readily removable and transportable and collapsible into small compass, and which can be unloaded with a minimum of effort.

Another object is to provide a suspendable clothes hamper of the type described which will eliminate the possibility of clothes falling outside the hamper when they are discharged from the clothes chute.

These and other objects and advantages of my invention will more fully appear from the following description made in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference characters refer to the same or similar parts throughout the several views, and in which:

Fig. l is a perspective view of one embodiment of my invention; and

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken along line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

One embodiment of my invention may include, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, a cylindrical bag indicated generally as 5 and having an open upper end as at 6 and a substantially closed bottom 7. A seam indicated generally as 8 is formed circumferentially of the bag adjacent the open upper end 6 and is secured to the openingdefining portions of the bag. As clearly shown in Fig. 1, this seam is sectionalized, the respective sections 9, 10, 11, and 12 of which are spaced from each other circumferentially of the opening 6. This leaves an open area as at 14 between the sections of the seam so that when a closed cable 15 is passed through the seam 8, various portions thereof will be exposed as shown. The continuous cable 15 is thus exposed at various points circumferentially of the bag and it is of sufiicient length nited States Patent 2,740,445 Patented Apr. 3, 1956 "ice bers: 16 which, in use, aresecured to the overhanging joist (not-"shown? of thebasementceiling. These hook members-16am normally positioned in surrounding re lation to the discharge opening of the clothes chute C so that when the cable 15 engages these hook members in the manner shown-in Fig, 1, the bag 5' will be suspended directly below the'di'scharge opening of theclothes chute with" its open-end6--in communication therewith The" substantially closed" bottom 7' has an elongated slit*17 formed' therein.-- A zipper 18 issecured'to' the slit 'dfihingportions ofth'e bottom 7 and serves to open and close the-sli't-17'.

Iii-use; the bag 5*is suspendedin the manner shown.

As the clothes descend through the "clothes chute'C they are discharged 'into theinterior of the bag where they are collected until the-housewife' desires to wash the same;

It isthen a' simple matter to extract the clothes by, openingthezipper 18; whereupon the clothes will tumble outwardly through the now open bottom of the bag.

Thereafter, the zipper 18 is again closed and the bag" is again'ready to collect additional dirty cl'otheswhiich Thus it can" be seen that it is an extremely simple matter to extract may descend through the clothes chute.

the clothes from-myimproved hamper.

One important advantage of myclothes hamper is that-it is readily adapted for'use "as -a duflle bag. When the-bag53is-so used, thecontents desired to be carried or 'moved are placed within the bagthrough the opening 6, and the openupper end portion may then be readily. closed-by merely drawing" upon the cable 15 at any" of the exposed portions 14 between one ofthe sections ofthe seam 8f Such'action will promptly draw'the opennpper end'of the'ba'g'S 'to-closedposition and the An added feature: isthat access can' be obtained" to the owner has a duflle- 'bag' which will servehim well.

interior of the bag in such instances from both ends thereof as a result of the presence of the zipper 18.

Other advantages of my bag are that the bag may be manufactured very inexpensively and it may be readily removed, rolled into small compass and transported with a minimum of effort. Thus, when the owner moves to a new home, he may easily take his hamper with him.

Another advantage is that my clothes hamper will not snag clothes such as stockings. It is easy to assemble for use; it is readily washable and does not endanger anyone who happens to move around within the basement; and there are no overhanging sharp corners which might cause serious injury to an individual who might bump against the same. In addition, it is a very simple matter to unload the bag when the housewife desires to wash the clothes collected therein. At the same time, the floor area of. the basement remains free for other usage. It will be noted that there is no possibility of clothes falling outside my hamper in View of the fact that the opening is directly below and adjacent to the discharge of the clothes chute.

It will, of course, be understood that various changes may be made in the form, details, arrangement and proportions of the various parts without departing from the scope of my invention.

What I claim is:

l. A clothes hamper comprising a fabric bag having an open upper end portion and having a circumferentially extending seam formed along its opening-defining portion, said seam having open portions at points spaced along its length, said bag having a substantially closed bottom with an elongated slit formed therein, zipper means for opening and closing said slit in the bottom of said bag, and a continuously formed drawstring extending through said seam and across its open portions whereby said drawstring may be engaged at various points'along'the circumference of the open upper end of said bag to support the latter in suspended position beneathaclothes chute. t j

2. A clothes hamper comprising a generally cylindrical bag made of fabric and having an open upper end por tion and having a seam formed along its opening-defining portion, closed cable means carried within said seam and being exposed to the exterior at various points along its length to adapt the same to cooperate with hook elements connected to a basement ceiling to support said bag in suspended and receiving position beneath a clothes chute, said bag having a bottom with an elongated slit formed therein, and zipper closure means carried by the slit-defining portions of the bottom of said bag, said closure means functioning to open and close said slit as desired to facilitate the removal of clothes therefrom.

3. A combined clothes hamper and duflie bag comprising a bag made of fabric and having anopen upper end portion, said bag having a seam formed thereon extending circumferentially of its opening-defining portion, said seam being interrupted at points spaced circumferentially of said opening, and a closed cable extending through said seam and across the interrupted portions thereof whereby the open end of said bag may be supported directly below a clothes chute by a plurality of hook members surrounding the chute and whereby said bag may be utilized as a dufile bag and said cable may be utilized as a drawstring in connection therewith.

4. A combined clothes hamper and dufiie bag com prising a bag made of fabric and having an open upper end and a bottom closed except for an elongated slit formed therein, said bag having a seam formed thereon extending circumferentially of its opening-defining portion, said seam being interrupted at points spaced circumferentially of said opening, zipper closure means carried by the slit-defining portions of the bottom of said bag for opening and closing said slit, and a closed cable extending through said seam and across the interrupted portions thereof whereby the open end of said 40 2,504,124

4 bag may be supported directly below a'clothes chute by a plurality of hook members surrounding the chute, or said bag may be utilized as,:-a duffie bag with said cable serving as a drawstring in connection therewith.

5. A clothes hamper comprising a cylindrical bag made of fabric and having an open upper end portion and having a sectional seam formed along its opening-defining portion, a closed drawstring carried within said seam and being exposed to the exterior between the sections of said seam at points spaced circumferentially of said open end portion to adapt the same to cooperate with hook elements which may be connected to a basement ceiling surrounding the discharge of a clothes chute in order to support said bag in suspended and receiving position beneath such a clothes chute, said bag having a bottom with an opening formed therein, and mechanical means for opening and closing the opening in said bottom as desired.

6. A clothes hamper comprising a fabricated bag of cylindrical shape having an open upper end portion and having a circumferentially extending seam formed along its opening-defining portion, said seam having spaced interruptions along its length, closed cable means carried within said seam for supporting said bag in a suspended position in cooperation with a plurality of hook elements secured to a basement ceiling, said bag having a bottom with an elongated slit formed therein, and zipper closure means carried by the slit-defining portions of said bottom for opening and closing said slit in the bottom of said bag to facilitate the ready removal of clothes from the interior of the bag.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 681,169 Hamilton Aug. 20, 1901 2,010,380 Schaaf Aug. 6, 1935 2,438,860 Miller Mar. 30, 1948 Hicks Apr. 18, 1950 

